Linius was right, his father would notice it but he had no intention of telling him anything about the 'blood' matter and how Cygnus was behind the dragon attack. He was afraid that if his father knew, he would definitely kill Cygnus or vice versa.
"Don't think too much about it father, our deal is fair and I'm sure that he would definitely get something out from all of these," Linius dodged the question and instead played safe. There's no need to give his father other things to worry about.
Ulysses was not convinced, this time he became more suspicious of what his son had been doing these past weeks. Rigel Anzel, he was not someone from the Kingdom of Lunaira, he was sure of it. He tried to investigate the young man's identity but he didn't find anything.
But since his son was unwilling to talk about it, Ulysses did not press him any further regarding the matter. Linius was already old enough to make decisions for himself and he was already aware of taking responsibility for every action he makes.
"I hope you won't regret this decision." Ulysses stared at his son's eyes without looking away and so did Linius. "Alright, since you already made a decision, I'll need to talk with Rigel tomorrow and give him a rundown of what Ginehart looked like on the inside."
"Thank you, father," Linius's expression softened. He was actually glad that his father was not like the other nobles he met every now and then during banquets. He was not pretentious nor greedy for power like they were.
Ulysses frowned, "Don't show me that expression, it gives me the chills. As long as you know what you are doing, I won't interfere but if your life will be in danger because of this, I won't stand by and watch." His voice was firm and it did not allow any arguments.
Linius nodded, "I understand father."
"Okay, you can go now. I'll need to talk to your mother too." Ulysses pointed at the door and waved his hand. Linius stood up and bid his father good night.
After signing some more documents that had accumulated throughout the day, Ulysses finally left his study and went to look for his wife. His footsteps echoed through the silent halls of the manor as he traced the familiar way towards his wife's personal art room. He knocked on the door twice then he stopped for a second before he knocked again, this time it was three times.
A sweet and gentle voice told him to come in. Ulysses turned the doorknob and pushed open the door slowly. His wife, Linette, was busy arranging the flowers she got that afternoon. She was humming while she enjoyed smelling and fixing the flowers to make them more beautiful.
"You're in high spirits today, duchess." Ulysses came up behind and hugged her. He rested his head on his wife's shoulder with his eyes trained on the pair of porcelain hands holding the roses she picked.
"My dear husband, of course I am, because Linius is home after a long time and he even brought with him his friends." Linette tilted her head to the side and gave the man a peck on his cheek.
"Ah, yes, you are right..." Ulysses paused followed by a deep sigh which caught his wife's attention. She stopped what she was doing and turned around to face the man.
"What is it? Is there something wrong with the people he brought home?" The duchess asked as her face turned cold.
Ulysses shook his head which softened his wife's expression. Linette then hugged the man and gently patted his back. She waited until the man was ready to tell her what was bothering him.
"Your son had devised a plan to eliminate all the thorns inside Ginehart and in order to do that, he made a deal with Rigel Anzel. The deal was for him to pose as Maverick and introduce him at your birthday banquet. I am not opposed to that plan but I am a bit worried about the deal Linius made with the man." He might have acted tough and unconcerned while speaking with Linius but deep down he was a father who still worried for his grown-up child.
Linette's hand that was patting his husband's back stopped after she heard what Ulysses had to say. She was frozen in shock that she didn't speak for a whole minute before she gathered her thoughts and calmed her mind.
"Why would he use Maverick's identity and come up with such a plan?" She appeared to be calm but Ulysses could feel the anger seeping through her words.
"I know that you don't feel good about this because Maverick is no longer with us. Linius's anger towards the people who did that haven't lessened even for a bit. You know how it affected him when his younger brother died and I can't blame him for it because that's how I felt too." Ulysses held both of her shoulders and slightly pushed her away so that he could see her face. "Are you really going to let the people who did that to Maverick have a great life while we are suffering because we lost him?"
Ulysses knew his wife's personality. Though she appeared to be gentle and would always give everyone a smile, she could hold a grudge for life. When Maverick died, she was devastated and almost went out to destroy the suspects but because they did not have any evidence and the arsonist was never found, Ulysses stopped her. She was so angry that she started to curse and destroy everything inside their room, luckily Ulysses calmed her down.
"You said that it is Rigel who will pose as Maverick right?" Linette closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Ulysses held her hands and guided her to the sofa placed just right after the large arching window where natural sunlight gives the room a natural glow during the day.
After they were seated, Ulysses told her the plan and the person who will act as Maverick. "Yes, according to Linius, he agreed. So, all I need to do is to tell him information about Ginehart just to be sure. Do you have a problem with Rigel?"
She remembered the young man he saw at the gazebo and the young man during the dinner. He was polite and had a warm smile on his face but she also noticed that those smiles were not real. They were forced and had become a habit of his. Any other people might be fooled but she was not.
Linette shook her head then she laid it on Ulysses' shoulders before she spoke. "I'm not sure. I just feel that he is not an ordinary person. There's something mysterious about him that draws people, dangerous and destructive. Whatever deal Linius made with him, we need to be careful and remind your son to always be vigilant."
Ulysses chuckled, "Yes, I already did that and you should do too. Talk to him tomorrow while I talk with Rigel."
"Alright, I hope everything goes well with this plan because I really want to see those people begging for their lives. No begging is not enough, I want them to be desperate and suffer in despair." Linette's eyes turned sharp and her voice became chilly as she said those words. Her hand was gripping Ulysses' large ones. The man used his left hand to pat the woman's hand until he felt it loosened and he felt the woman relax.
Linette closed her eyes at the gentle patting she felt. It always relaxed her whenever Ulysses held her hands and gently pats her. She only felt secure and calm with him around. The days to come would surely be tedious and tense because of what Linius was about to do but she would make sure that she would be there to support her child.
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